Plane and Simple
by Che1sea
Summary: 15Love Fic It wasn't right and the Top Guns knew it. There was no way their best friends could've died in a plane crash, it just didn't feel right. The Top Guns set off to where the Hamstead Tournament took place and investigate the deaths of their friend
1. 10:47

Hamstead- June 16th, 7:30 AM 

"You did it, Megs!" Sebastien congratulated as Megan won her third match of the Hamstead Tournament. She plopped her tired body onto the players' bench and took a sip of water from her bottle.

"Barely, it was too close. I let to many shots go." Megan scowled, knocking her racket on the ground. Sebastien, who had been sitting in the bleachers the whole time, climbed down and went to sit beside her.

"Why are you always so hard on yourself?" He frowned, sliding his hand through his hair.

"I have to be hard on myself if I want to win." She grinned as she stuffed her belongings into her gym bag.

"That understandable, bien sur, but you won, Megan! You're in the finals! It's time to celebrate!" He told her as he took her by the hand and lead her out of the court and towards the campus' café.

"Sebastien, coffee isn't good before a match! You're in the finals, too, we both have to keep our health up not drown it by drinking caffeine."

"They don't only sell coffee at cafés."

"Oh you're right, I forgot about all the chocolate muffins and fatty cakes." Megan cringed but Sebastien licked his lips at the thought. "Hungry, aren't we?" She laughed as he nodded.

"A little chocolate never hurt anyone. Please, just one little chocolate cookie?" Sebastien pleaded half-jokingly

"You know, that's how it all starts, just one cookie and all of a sudden you've eaten your weight in sweets."

"Fine, you win. But I promised Squib I'd buy him a box of chocolate." He said as he continued to make his way towards the shop.

"That's illegal, Sebastien!"

"Only if he eats them, if he doesn't eat them it's just a souvenir."

"Squib told you that, didn't he?" And Megan chuckled as Sebastien nodded once more.

---

"Your hands are raw!" Sebastien exclaimed holding Megan's hand in his and examining it, she couldn't help but tingle at the feeling of his skin touching hers.

"I'm, uh, used to it." She shrugged, slowly pulling her hand away from his and hiding it in her pocket.

"Oh mon Dieu, there's a lot of people!" He shuddered as he entered the court where he was about to play his final match of tournament in a matter of minutes.

"You'll do fine. You've made it this far. Just think, after this we can finally go home and rest." Megan patted him reassuringly on the back and Sebastien gave a nervous smile in return.

The match went on for what seemed to be hours. The ball was constantly being hit and served across the court but in the end Sebastien turned up the victorious one. In one hand he held the Hamstead Cup and in the other hand a beaming Megan.

"Now it's your turn." He whispered to her as camera snapped their pictures.

**Cascadia- June 16th, 7:30 PM **

He couldn't understand it, he couldn't understand how one moment, one second, could change his life, forever. How one careless pilot's mistake could cause so much damage and affect so many people. It seemed hardly fair, but Squib knew that nothing in life was fair, life just wasn't fair, and he had learnt that the hard way.

_Twap_, it was the sound of a small furry green ball hitting the old court's brick wall. It rebounded and he hit it once more with the tennis racket. He was muttering and cursing under his breath as rain trickled down the sides of his face. He glanced for a moment at the bleachers where he had left his guitar case, open. He hated that case, it represented his unwillingness to let go, just a few hours ago it held one racket; his brother's, but now it held two; Sebastien's.

He could feel his stomach begin to tighten as a wave of exhaustion hit him, the rain had picked up and he had found himself in the middle of a thunderstorm.

"Squib, come inside, please!" Begged a certain red-headed girl, her face was completely soaked and he wasn't sure if it was because of the rain or her tears.

"Just let me hit it once more time." He wheezed, changing the position of the racket in his hands. He gave the tennis ball another whack and before he could do it again the girl had grabbed the ball away from him.

"Please, you've been out here for hours. You're going to get sick." Her was unusually desperate and he couldn't help but obey. He made his way to his guitar case and gently placed the racket on top of the other one, revealing the initials _S.D_. He could feel her watching him, but he didn't care even though he'd spent so much of his time trying to hide the contents of it. He closed the case and put his arm around her. He was a good two feet taller than her, forcing her to look up into his eyes. He knew than that she had been crying, a lot. With his right index finger he tucked a strand of loose hair behind her ear.

"Let's go inside."

---

"It's not right!" Adena screamed, pounding her fists on the bed in front of her, tears already overflowing her eyes. Squib sat next to her, his face blank and still wet from earlier. "This can't be happening." She wailed, again no one said anything or reacted.

"This can't be happening" Squib repeated Adena's sentence in a whisper.

"And to think that at 10:47 I was busy watching Rick stuff his mouth with energy bars while two of my best friends were dying." Adena cried, burying her face in the palms of her hands.

"What did you just say?" Cody asked, her face shocked.

"And to think that at 10:47-"

"10:47?" Cody gasped snapping her fingers in realization.

"What's so great about 10:47?"

"Don't you guys remember? Megan and Sebastien's plane only left the airport at 12:47!"

"So you mean-" Adena started but Squib finished for her

"-they're still alive!"


	2. Probable

**Hamstead- June 16th, 9:30 AM **

"I can't do this…" Megan cried clutching her racket hard in her hands, the blisters on her fingers causing her an enormous amount of pain.

"Come on, Megs, you're one game short of being a superstar, you can do it!" Sebastien smiled taking her racket out of her hands. "You're going to kill yourself if you keep squeezing this."

"Can't you see!" She groaned grabbing her racket back "This is the finals! My whole career is depending on this!"

"I realize that, look if I could do it, you can too."

"You're a much better tennis player than I am." She argued heading down from the hotel to the courts.

"Don't say that, tell you what, after you win this match we'll play a little game and see who's better."

"_If _I win."

"Why do you always do that, Megan? Try to be a little optimistic." He frowned stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"Optimism just isn't my thing."

"You sound like Adena." He laughed and she blushed.

"Yeah, well, she was bound to rub off on me after knowing her for 11 years."

"So you know that if she was hear she'd tell you to relax and that you'd do fine."

"I guess so. Okay. I'm going to win!" Megan grinned waving her racket proudly in the air.

"That's the spirit!"

**Cascadia- June 16th, 7:45 PM **

"This is great!" Adena exclaimed doing a little pirouette on the spot.

"We have to tell Bates, we have to tell that this was all a big misunderstanding and we have to go pick up Megs and Seb at the airport." Cody said dragging her friends out of her house, they were all happy and relieved that there was a possibility that their friends were still alive.

"Principal Bates!" Squib called out when they reached his office.

"Come in…" Bates invited, his voice was depressed and his students couldn't wait to tell him the good news.

"Principal Bates! Principal Bates! They're alive! Megan and Sebastien are alive! They're plane wasn't meant to leave until 12:47! 2 hours after the plane crashed!" Adena grinned

"Please take a seat." The trio was surprised that the tone of his voice hadn't changed; the sadness was still there.

"What's wrong, Sir?" Cody asked, regretting the answer.

"I'm afraid that I did remember their plane left at 12:47, when I was first heard about the accident I immediately called Hamstead Airport. I consulted the manager and he told me that…" He paused and looked at the students in front of them, tears already filling up their eyes. "…That there was an opening on the plane for two passengers, Megan and Sebastien were already at the airport waiting for their plane so they were offered their seats. They got on that plane." There was a moment of silence and the gang collected their bearings.

"How sure are you that it was them?" Squib finally spoke up.

"89 percent sure, the manager told me that they had used Megan and Sebastien's tickets."

"Did they check their passports?" Cody questioned

"No, it's a small airport, there really is no need too."

"So it's possible that they didn't get on the plane."

"Possible but not probable."

"Why not probable! It could be that some people stole their tickets knowing that the airport didn't require idea." Adena cried

"It's possible, but again that's not what I call probable."

"But, Sir, it's a perfect explanation!" She continued

"Mrs. Stiles, we're all grieving, denial isn't going to help matters."

"But, Sir-"

"-ENOUGH!"


	3. Match Point

Hamstead- June 16th, 7:30 AM 

"You did it, Megs!" Sebastien congratulated as Megan won her third match of the Hamstead Tournament. She plopped her tired body onto the players' bench and took a sip of water from her bottle.

"Barely, it was too close. I let to many shots go." Megan scowled, knocking her racket on the ground. Sebastien, who had been sitting in the bleachers the whole time, climbed down and went to sit beside her.

"Why are you always so hard on yourself?" He frowned, sliding his hand through his hair.

"I have to be hard on myself if I want to win." She grinned as she stuffed her belongings into her gym bag.

"That understandable, bien sur, but you won, Megan! You're in the finals! It's time to celebrate!" He told her as he took her by the hand and lead her out of the court and towards the campus' café.

"Sebastien, coffee isn't good before a match! You're in the finals, too, we both have to keep our health up not drown it by drinking caffeine."

"They don't only sell coffee at cafés."

"Oh you're right, I forgot about all the chocolate muffins and fatty cakes." Megan cringed but Sebastien licked his lips at the thought. "Hungry, aren't we?" She laughed as he nodded.

"A little chocolate never hurt anyone. Please, just one little chocolate cookie?" Sebastien pleaded half-jokingly

"You know, that's how it all starts, just one cookie and all of a sudden you've eaten your weight in sweets."

"Fine, you win. But I promised Squib I'd buy him a box of chocolate." He said as he continued to make his way towards the shop.

"That's illegal, Sebastien!"

"Only if he eats them, if he doesn't eat them it's just a souvenir."

"Squib told you that, didn't he?" And Megan chuckled as Sebastien nodded once more.

---

"Your hands are raw!" Sebastien exclaimed holding Megan's hand in his and examining it, she couldn't help but tingle at the feeling of his skin touching hers.

"I'm, uh, used to it." She shrugged, slowly pulling her hand away from his and hiding it in her pocket.

"Oh mon Dieu, there's a lot of people!" He shuddered as he entered the court where he was about to play his final match of tournament in a matter of minutes.

"You'll do fine. You've made it this far. Just think, after this we can finally go home and rest." Megan patted him reassuringly on the back and Sebastien gave a nervous smile in return.

The match went on for what seemed to be hours. The ball was constantly being hit and served across the court but in the end Sebastien turned up the victorious one. In one hand he held the Hamstead Cup and in the other hand a beaming Megan.

"Now it's your turn." He whispered to her as camera snapped their pictures.

**Cascadia- June 16th, 7:30 PM **

He couldn't understand it, he couldn't understand how one moment, one second, could change his life, forever. How one careless pilot's mistake could cause so much damage and affect so many people. It seemed hardly fair, but Squib knew that nothing in life was fair, life just wasn't fair, and he had learnt that the hard way.

_Twap_, it was the sound of a small furry green ball hitting the old court's brick wall. It rebounded and he hit it once more with the tennis racket. He was muttering and cursing under his breath as rain trickled down the sides of his face. He glanced for a moment at the bleachers where he had left his guitar case, open. He hated that case, it represented his unwillingness to let go, just a few hours ago it held one racket; his brother's, but now it held two; Sebastien's.

He could feel his stomach begin to tighten as a wave of exhaustion hit him, the rain had picked up and he had found himself in the middle of a thunderstorm.

"Squib, come inside, please!" Begged a certain red-headed girl, her face was completely soaked and he wasn't sure if it was because of the rain or her tears.

"Just let me hit it once more time." He wheezed, changing the position of the racket in his hands. He gave the tennis ball another whack and before he could do it again the girl had grabbed the ball away from him.

"Please, you've been out here for hours. You're going to get sick." Her was unusually desperate and he couldn't help but obey. He made his way to his guitar case and gently placed the racket on top of the other one, revealing the initials _S.D_. He could feel her watching him, but he didn't care even though he'd spent so much of his time trying to hide the contents of it. He closed the case and put his arm around her. He was a good two feet taller than her, forcing her to look up into his eyes. He knew than that she had been crying, a lot. With his right index finger he tucked a strand of loose hair behind her ear.

"Let's go inside."

---

"It's not right!" Adena screamed, pounding her fists on the bed in front of her, tears already overflowing her eyes. Squib sat next to her, his face blank and still wet from earlier. "This can't be happening." She wailed, again no one said anything or reacted.

"This can't be happening" Squib repeated Adena's sentence in a whisper.

"And to think that at 10:47 I was busy watching Rick stuff his mouth with energy bars while two of my best friends were dying." Adena cried, burying her face in the palms of her hands.

"What did you just say?" Cody asked, her face shocked.

"And to think that at 10:47-"

"10:47?" Cody gasped snapping her fingers in realization.

"What's so great about 10:47?"

"Don't you guys remember? Megan and Sebastien's plane only left the airport at 12:47!"

"So you mean-" Adena started but Squib finished for her

"-they're still alive!"

**Hamstead- June 16th, 9:30 AM **

"I can't do this…" Megan cried clutching her racket hard in her hands, the blisters on her fingers causing her an enormous amount of pain.

"Come on, Megs, you're one game short of being a superstar, you can do it!" Sebastien smiled taking her racket out of her hands. "You're going to kill yourself if you keep squeezing this."

"Can't you see!" She groaned grabbing her racket back "This is the finals! My whole career is depending on this!"

"I realize that, look if I could do it, you can too."

"You're a much better tennis player than I am." She argued heading down from the hotel to the courts.

"Don't say that, tell you what, after you win this match we'll play a little game and see who's better."

"_If _ I win."

"Why do you always do that, Megan? Try to be a little optimistic." He frowned stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"Optimism just isn't my thing."

"You sound like Adena." He laughed and she blushed.

"Yeah, well, she was bound to rub off on me after knowing her for 11 years."

"So you know that if she was hear she'd tell you to relax and that you'd do fine."

"I guess so. Okay. I'm going to win!" Megan grinned waving her racket proudly in the air.

"That's the spirit!"

**Cascadia- June 16th, 7:45 PM **

"This is great!" Adena exclaimed doing a little pirouette on the spot.

"We have to tell Bates, we have to tell that this was all a big misunderstanding and we have to go pick up Megs and Seb at the airport." Cody said dragging her friends out of her house, they were all happy and relieved that there was a possibility that their friends were still alive.

"Principal Bates!" Squib called out when they reached his office.

"Come in…" Bates invited, his voice was depressed and his students couldn't wait to tell him the good news.

"Principal Bates! Principal Bates! They're alive! Megan and Sebastien are alive! They're plane wasn't meant to leave until 12:47! 2 hours after the plane crashed!" Adena grinned

"Please take a seat." The trio was surprised that the tone of his voice hadn't changed; the sadness was still there.

"What's wrong, Sir?" Cody asked, regretting the answer.

"I'm afraid that I did remember their plane left at 12:47, when I was first heard about the accident I immediately called Hamstead Airport. I consulted the manager and he told me that…" He paused and looked at the students in front of them, tears already filling up their eyes. "…That there was an opening on the plane for two passengers, Megan and Sebastien were already at the airport waiting for their plane so they were offered their seats. They got on that plane." There was a moment of silence and the gang collected their bearings.

"How sure are you that it was them?" Squib finally spoke up.

"89 percent sure, the manager told me that they had used Megan and Sebastien's tickets."

"Did they check their passports?" Cody questioned

"No, it's a small airport, there really is no need too."

"So it's possible that they didn't get on the plane."

"Possible but not probable."

"Why not probable! It could be that some people stole their tickets knowing that the airport didn't require idea." Adena cried

"It's possible, but again that's not what I call probable."

"But, Sir, it's a perfect explanation!" She continued

"Mrs. Stiles, we're all grieving, denial isn't going to help matters."

"But, Sir-"

"-ENOUGH!"

**Hamstead- June 16th, 9:55 AM**

The sun shined brightly on the tennis courts, all eyes were on Megan and her opponent. It was the last match of the tournament, the finals. Megan planted her feet firmly on the ground, holding her racket in both hands as she studied her opponent. She watched carefully as the girl threw the ball in the air, everything seemed to be happening in slow motion. That could only mean one thing. Megan was in the zone. The ball was coming her way and in an instant everything was calculated in her mind, she'd move to the right and hit it with her amazing backhand. The crowd clapped, 15/Love O'Connor. Match point O'Connor. Set O'Connor. Game O'Connor. Tournament O'Connor.

"I did it, Sebastien!" She exclaimed running up towards him, her black hair bouncing with every stride she took.

"Just like I knew you would!" Sebastien smiled and Megan threw herself into his arms. He was surprised, to say the least, but he hugged her in a loving manner. She pulled away, realizing she hadn't yet accepted her trophy. She ran up to the podium, slightly red, she took her award as the crowd cheered her on.

---

"Megs, could this weekend be any better?" Sebastien grinned as they headed back to their hotel rooms to pack for the flight ahead.

"Nothing can ruin this, nothing." She smiled, a thrill took over her, a thrill she had never felt before. Because everything had fallen into place, when she got home her career who surely sky-rocket from her success in the tournament and she was alone with Sebastien. She was almost sure that he felt the same way about her as she did about him. There was a break of silence and they both stopped walking. He lowered his face into hers, their lips about to meet. She wanted to remember this moment forever, her first real kiss with the boy she loved for so long. She could smell his fresh breath and the scent of his cologne that covered his body.

"Excuse me, sorry for interrupting but you two are the Hamstead winners, right?" They quickly pulled back, Sebastien mentally slapping himself for not going through with the kiss. He looked at the reporter in front of them and mumbled 'yes'.

"Great, mind if I take a picture?" He was rather young looking. Silky black hair smoothed back, bright green eyes and a _very_ muscular built. Sebastien couldn't help but feel intimidated.

"Err, yeah. Sure, I don't mind. S'okay with you?" Megan asked Sebastien and the reporter waiting for him to nod his head.

"Great! Come with me." The reporter smiled

"Where are we going?" Megan questing her hand wrapped around Seb's.

"There's too much light here, I thought maybe we could go to a shadier area."

"Actually, I don't think we can… Me and Sebastien have to pack for our trip home."

"Nonsense, I just need one picture."

"I'm sorry but we really do have to go." The shook his head and ushered them towards the forest off the campus, they followed reluctantly. It would be the last time anyone ever saw Megan O'Connor and Sebastien Dubé.

**Cascadia- June 16th, 8:00 PM **

Cody, Squib and Adena dragged themselves out of Mr. Bates office each of them feeling more and more depressed.

"Cody, how much do you think a plane ride to Hamstead cost? Hypothetically of course." Adena asked her as they walked down the empty hallway.

"Probably 500$, hypothetically speaking."

"So if we were, hypothetically, going to Hamstead all 3 of us it would only cost 1,500$?"

"Hypothetically."

"Then let's do it."

"I thought you were being hypothetical." Squib muttered.

"I was, but I'm not anymore. They're alive, I can feel it. I'm sure I have enough money saved up for us to go. What do you say?"

"I'm in."

"I'm in."

"Then it's settled, we'll leave tomorrow morning."

"To Hamstead."

"To Hamstead."


	4. Guardian

**Unknown- June 17th, 12:50 PM**

Trees were all that could be seen, wet grass covered the soft soil. Everything looked the same, making it very easy for someone to get lost. And that would happen to Megan and Sebastien who were presently laying under a large weeping willow.

To a passerby they would appear to have been taking a nap but they had been deposited there unconscious by the 'reporter' from yesterday. Megan would be first to wake up, her hazel eyes open wide as she felt a sense of dizziness in her. She franticly stood up not even noticing Sebastien's sleeping body at her feet. She spun in a circle trying to figure out where she was, but she could not spot anything that looked even slightly familiar. Megan took a step forward, tripping over Sebastien causing him to wake up abruptly.

"Oh my God, Sebastien!" She cried throwing herself onto him, her face dirty from her previous fall.

"Megs, what's going on? Where are we?" It was clear that he was in no state of worry and was definitely not panicking.

"I don't know, we're in some forest! That man, that reporter, he tried to kill us and hide our bodies in this, this, this forest!" Megan let go of her grip on him and scrambled to her feet.

"You really think he was trying to kill us?" Sebastien asked but Megan knew he wasn't asking her, he was settling on a theory.

"Well, yes." Megan blurted, not sure what else to say.

"But it makes no sense, Megan. We're completely unharmed." He looked at himself up and down "Not even a scratch, don't you think if he actually wanted to kill us we'd at least have one bruise?"

"Okay, what are you getting?" Megan gave him a funny look and examined herself noticing the lack of abuse on her body that would've been expected from a murderer.

"Nothing, I just don't believe he was trying to kill us. _Ca ne fais pas de sense_. It doesn't make sense."

"_Ca ne fais pas de sense." _Megan grumbled mockingly, which was very unlike her but trees can have that sort of effect on people. "Maybe he was planning on killing us in the forest so that our screams of pain wouldn't be heard. But then he felt guilty so he just left us here to rot to death. Like that he wouldn't be charge with murder because when they'd find our bodies they'd assume we had wandered off campus."

"Wow, Megan I never knew you had such a morbid train of thought." He paused and she grimaced "Look, what you said _is_ possible but what would his motive be?"

"Jealousy or revenge! We did win the Hamstead maybe we played on of his children and beat them. This is his way of getting us back."

"I don't think so."

"So what's your theory, Einstein?"

"Maybe he was just delaying us from something. Remember when we told him about catching our plane? He grew nervous, you could see it in his eyes and he started talking quickly and was eager to bring us here." Again Sebastien wasn't talking to Megan but rather thinking aloud. "Maybe something happened on the plane…"

"Like a crash where everyone died?" Megan frowned

"Maybe. Yeah that's it! Megan, it all makes sense! Look how we woke up, we were completely unharmed. This is probably the forest right by the campus. It'll be easy to get back and he knew it! Something must've happened or could've happened to us if he hadn't brought us here."

"And how would he know that?"

"He's an angel, a guardian angel."

"A guardian angel! Okay someone has definitely hit you over the head with a rock. What kind of guardian angel would leave us in a forest?"

"I don't know, but it's what makes sense to me right now."

"It's a nice thought, better than thinking someone was trying to kill us." Megan's face softened and she sat herself on the ground beside Sebastien.

"That's the Megan I know and love." He laughed as he extended one arm around her. The last word came as a surprise to Megan, but she decided that he probably didn't mean it. But he did.

"So what do we do now, Sebastien?" Megan asked in a low whisper as if someone were eavesdropping.

"We don't give up."


	5. Shattered Hope, Part One

**A/N: **This was a really hard chapter for me to write, had to dig deep into every feeling I had of pain and right them down. R&R, I'm begging you.

**Somewhere Above The Pacific Ocean- June 18th, 8:30 AM**

The plane had begun to lift off the ground. The sensation of dread hung over a certain 3 of its passengers. The 3 who wouldn't give up. The 3 who wouldn't lose hope. The 3 who would probably be permanently expelled from their boarding school when the trip finished. The ones who people believed were acting on false hope. But they wouldn't give up.

They couldn't.

Adena's face was pressed against the airplane's window. The vibrations and shaking not even fazing her. She couldn't feel it, she was numb all over. Completely immune to anything physical. Her emotions were in utter turmoil; they tossed and churned inside of her. She wanted to vomit. There was a strong burning sensation in her throat. She wanted to scream. Her eyes read hopelessness; she was trying hard not to lose hope. She wanted to cry.

Squib looked strangely calm and composed, and he knew it. He was doing it on purpose. For Cody's and Adena's sake, they looked destroyed.

Broken.

And he hated to admit it but he felt broken too. There was a mixture of guilt, anger and hate stirring in his brain. Today was the day of the funeral, he felt guilty for not going. What kind of person doesn't attend their best friend's funeral?

A hopeful one?

He was angry that his friends weren't here. He was angry that he was fussing over them. Angry at them for dying, without giving him so much as a warning. No, no, no, they weren't dead. He hated himself for even considering that they were dead. They were still out there, as far as he was concerned. And he loathed the people who were calling him and the two girls crazy or confused for trying to find them. He had to have hope.

Because that was all he had to hang on too.

Hope.

And then there was Cody. Her red hair tangled and matted. She had on the same pair of jeans she had been wearing for the past 3 days. She wasn't sure what was happening to her. Her fingers were developing the annoying habit of drumming. They drummed whenever they touch a flat surface.

It was annoying.

And when she wasn't drumming she was biting her nails. Something she hadn't done since her dog died 5 years ago. It was her body's way of distracting her mind from going back to _them_. Because she feared that if she thought about them she'd loose hope in ever finding them.

Alive.

She wished her mind would just stop working. It kept going back to them, kept going back to the stupid tennis ball hitting the ground. _'Megan and Sebastien were among the passengers on the plane'_ No they hadn't, she wanted to scream. They had to be alive.

They just had too.

She just wanted to collapse, the emotional pain corrupting her mind and body. Cody was beginning to wonder which was worse. Emotional pain? Or physical pain? She purposely stubbed her toe into the seat in front of her. She let out a quiet yelp. _'Ouch.',_ she thought. So far she'd pick physical pain without any hesitation. And then there was that sickening feeling in her stomach again. The feeling of not knowing.

Not knowing whether or not her friend were in fact alive.

Suddenly her thoughts grew dark and her mouth went dry. So what if they were right? Where the hell were Megan and Sebastien? Did they just expect to land in Hamstead and see Megan and Sebastien's grinning faces waiting for them at the airport? She honestly hadn't given this much thought. She turned her head slightly to face Squib. His expression terrified her, she knew he was in a state of utter shock and confusion. His fingers clenched around the front of his armrests. His knuckles turning white. And for a second she believed he'd shatter the pieces of plastic. And then she looked at Adena. The look on that girl's face made Cody want to sob.

She looked broken.

Broken like the china doll her grandmother had told her not to touch, broken like when Cody took it from its place. Broken like when it hit the floor from accidentally slipping out of the redhead's hands. The pieces of the doll's face scattered all over the mahogany floor.

Broken.

She realized she felt the same way. As if someone had reached deep into her chest, wiggled it hand around and pluck a piece of her heart out. She snorted at the idea.

She was going insane.

The snort startled Adena to the bone and she glowered dangerously at Cody who slunk back into her chair. What the hell was there to snort about? And the two girls were silent, tension rising. But the sound of crying broke the staring contest. She whipped her head farther to the right only to see Squib breaking down.

Broken.

**Cascadia- June 18th, 11:30 AM**

The morning was grim and Charles Bates bolted upright from his bed and straight to his closet, fumbling through his clothes. He was trying to find something black. And he was late; he should've been up an hour ago. He found what he need, dressed, cleaned him up and without further thought he darted out of his house.

He slowed down as he reached his students and Coach Gunnerson, he tried to force out a smile but it ended up looking like a messed up frown. He bowed his head in remorse, trying to collect his bearings. Trying to get prepared for the ahead.

The funeral.

His students watched him with such an intense look of loss in their eyes he wanted to scream. Want to scream, "_I don't know what the hell to do, so stop staring at before I shove a tennis ball up your ass._" He stood shell-shocked that he could even think of such a thing.

He took a deep breath and opened his car door, ushering two of his students and the coach behind him. He saw from the corner of his eye the short, young, blonde, Romanian girl. He knew her so well, yet today, in her black knee-length dress she looked like a complete stranger. And his heart sank, because he knew she'd never be the same girl that she used to be. Her big blue eyes were puffy and red from crying. The usual I-don't-give-a-fuck-about-you-or-this-school-because-I'm-so-perfect-and-of-course-better-than-you aroma was gone. He knew perfectly well this incident would change her forever.

Hell, she looked broken.

He swallowed hard as he heard his engine roar. He bit the side of his cheek knowing this was going to be a very painful day indeed. He snuck a look at Coach Gunnerson who was slumped limply in the passenger's seat. His face looked dim and weary. His usual harsh face had faded and wrinkles surrounded the ends of his eyes. Those pools of dark brown, his eyes, in his eyes alone Bates could see sadness. And it hurt him bad to see it. And he knew it,

Gunns was broken.

Mournfully he checked his rearview mirror and saw Rick. And Charles shook his face in disbelief, the boy wasn't smiling and he had lost the twinkle in his eyes. He did however have a tennis ball with a slit for a mouth, eyes drawn by a permanent marker sitting in his lap. It took a while to see that the fuzzy green thing had drawn-on tears. He took another look at the black haired boy and sighed, half-expecting the boy to ask what was wrong. But Geddes didn't so much as flinch. The regular old kiss-Mr.-Bates-ass had been sucked out of him and all that was left was a 15 year old.

A broken 15 year old.

And it took Bates a moment to realize it.

He was broken too.

**A/N: **It was short, so I'll make this part one of a two part chapter. And no you were not seeing things, that was Mr. Bates POV. And no, I have not gone crazy.


	6. Shattered Hope, Part Two

**Unknown, June 18th, 12:45 PM **

Slowly Megan stretched out on the ground, kicking off her sneakers and placing them neatly beside her. She inhaled the scent of the forest, hoping that she could somehow pick up on something that had any association with civilization. She sighed inwardly as she peered around her, Sebastien had gone out to collect some fresh water, which meant her only company for the last five minutes had been the trees.

Not so comforting.

The stream was beginning to fill up and Sebastien found himself perfectly at ease, as he perched himself on a large boulder. His back was arched slightly as he dragged his fingers through the rushing water. The cool liquid tingled the tips of his extremities and he let out a breath. So far they had spent two nights in the woods and already he was feeling groggy. Which was understandable since he spent the dark hours of the day keeping watch over 'camp' and, of course, Megan. Who was being a considerable nuisance too him. Always complaining about how they should get a move on and not stay in the same place the whole time; start exploring their new environment and just things of that sort. She was a sweet person, really, she was, it was just that she could be, well, just a bit, demanding… But Sebastien figured it came with being determined.

She was awfully determined.

Ungracefully Megan arose to her feet, slapping herself down in order to shake off the grass or dirt that she might have collected while laying down. She shook her hair out and ran a figure through it, a few strands of raven black hair fell to the ground.

Great, she was shedding.

After convincing his body to move, he scooped up some water from the stream into two bottles. (Bottles that were, luckily, in Sebastien's and Megan's gym bags that they disappeared with.) Sheepishly, he rubbed his eyes and yawned loudly.

God, he was tired.

She jumped when she heard something rustle from behind her. Quickly she spun around, ready to kick whatever was threatening her.

"Just me, Megs." Sebastien sighed knowingly, tossing a bottle in her direction.

"Never can be too careful. With guardian angels like yours I can only fear the enemies." She caught the bottle and managed to flash him a shy smile.

"You know I've been thinking about what you said."

"Hmm, what about?"

"Not staying in one place." He glanced around him and shrugged desperately "I guess we should start looking for, uh, something."

"We don't have to if you don't want too. We could always wait itout another day and see what happens." Megan offered, unscrewing the top off her bottle. She paused before taking a long sip. Letting the icy fresh water fill up her lungs.

"I don't know, it'll rain in a few days. The clouds are starting to move in quicker and quicker."

"And how would you know this?" She asked, trying to make the question sound as casual as possible. "I mean, after all, being rich and living in France wouldn't exactly give you such a big opportunity to become an outdoorsman. Would it?"

"Megan, there's something I need to tell you." He shifted slightly and took a deep breath.

- - -

**Hamstead (England), June 18th, 1:45 PM**

It was painful to step off the plane, not knowing what to expect when you got off. Adena struggled to gain her composure when she reached the airport's lobby. Her eyes searched the small room franticly, a part of her expected Megan to run out from a corner and hug her. Tell her it was all going to be okay. That she wasn't gone. Slowly Adena dropped to her knees. Curls falling in front of her eyes, forming a shell around her young face.

Cody stood in front of her fallen friend. Hoping there was something she could say to make everything better. But she knew that the only thing she could do to make any of this _better_ was to bring Megan and Sebastien back. And somehow it sounded nothing short of impossible. Where were they? Were they even alive? Were they okay? She hated not knowing, she was so used to having answers for everything that her life felt as if it was coming apart. _Not everything in life needs an answer, right? _She told herself as she mindlessly bent down next to her friend. An arm around the girl's shoulder, embracing her tightly. They were going to find Megan and Sebastien.

There was no way around it.

Squib watched the scene unfold before his eyes. If only he could express his emotions that easily and freely. He wished he could leave his dignity behind and just bawl his goddamn eyes out. Instead he held both hands out in front of the girls and sad smile made it's way onto his face as tears began to prick his eyes.

"Come on, don't lose hope now." He wheezed, the three of them knew he was trying to reassure himself but decided to ignore it. Slowly Adena and Cody took a hold of his hand and pulled themselves onto their feet.

Quietly, solemnly, but not awkwardly they made their way to the main street and hailed a cab.

"Hamstead Campus, please." Squib murmured to the driver. The driver looked at them suspiciously. He was rather young looking. Silky black hair smoothed back, bright green eyes and a _very_ muscular built.

**A/N: **So sorry for the lenght and delay hope you enjoyed it all the same.


	7. Chapter 7

The smell of morning dew filled the air and Cody could remember the feeling of the car jerking to the side of the road by a forest.

She could remember being told to get out of the car.

She could remember seeing Squib lurch onto the cab driver.

She could remember trying to hold him back.

She could remember screaming.

And then, everything just went black.

Completly black.

The next thing she knew she was awake and lying underneath a willow tree. Her whole body ached and her head throbbed with an extreme intensity.

_shit._

She felt like she was on the verge of something.

As if she were on the verge of a new discovery.

Wow, did her body ever ache.

Thoughts ran through her as she tried to steady herself and get up.

_Squib. _

_Adena._

_Shit. _

She tried to scream but nothing but a hoarse rasping whisper would escape her mouth.

_Squib._

She tried again, but still nothing.

What was going on?

Was this some kind of joke?

What the hell was going on?

Was this the end?

Where were her friends?

_WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?_

_-----_

"Okay… Go ahead, Sebastien."

Quiet.

"Sebastien, what is it?"

"I need to tell you something."

"I heard you the first time."

Silence.

"I don't know how to say this."

"Just say it."

"You'll never look at me the same way ever again."

"Sebastien, what's wrong?"

"I really don't know how to say this. I mean I do, _sacre bleu_, I just don't know how to say this."

Her heart skipped a beat.

Maybe he was going to tell her he loved her.

Finally.

"Just say it."

"Okay. I'm not who you think you are."

Confusion.

"Wait, what?"

"I'm not some rich kid from France. I'm some poor kid from Montreal. My father works at the bowling alley, he makes hardly enough to pay tuition and pay rent."

Tension.

"Why didn't you tell me that earlier?"

She was in hysterics.

And looked calmer than she actually was.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know how."

"You lied to me."

Her voice cracked.

He was crushed.

"I lied to everyone."

"You lied to me. You _fucking_ lied to me."

"Megan, please. I never meant to hurt you."

"That's not just one tiny little lie, Sebastien Dube. That's a big lie. You lied about who you are."

"I'm still the same person."

A part of her wanted to believe him.

But how could she believe someone who lied about himself?

"I need to go."

She picked up her gym bag and headed north.

"Then I need to go too."

"I need to go alone."

"Megan, please just listen to me."

"I'm through with listening to you. Whoever you are."


End file.
